Alchemist Theatre Stages ‘A Life in the Theatre’

The Alchemist Theatre’s production of the early David Mamet
two-hander, A Life in the Theatre, is
an exquisitely staged and sensitively performed offering. Milwaukee Opera
Theatre’s Jill Anna Ponasik directs (her debut in a non-musical/operatic genre),
and her sensibilities as a choreographer and sonic expert do great service to
the rendering. Each transition is seamless and rhythmic (think folding chairs
snapped open and set down in perfect unison), ensuring visual and aural
interest throughout every moment of this remarkably succinct work. Bolstering
the excellent direction is smartly crafted lighting by Antishadows and sound
design by Aaron Kopec. This is a script in which perfect timing is vital to
communicating a great deal in a short span of time and all production elements
deliver marvelously.

David Sapiro and James Pickering are masterful in their
respective roles of a younger actor coming into the peak of his powers with a
hearty dash of arrogance, and an older actor who is wise, sometimes petty and
painfully aware of his own decline. Sapiro’s command of facial and vocal expression
is especially commendable since Mamet’s spare and snappy dialogue depends upon
its performers to imbue it with subtext. Here, the young actor, John, is both a
scion of his time—veiling his impatience for the big time—and an archetypal
hero fully dedicated to his craft and essentially receptive to the counsel of
his elders.

Pickering is heart-wrenching as the fading star, Robert, who
seems to decide to mentor John for a host of complex reasons, ranging from a
sincere sense of duty to the next generation to a desire to relive his own
youth. Testament to his genius even when modes of expression are limited by
staging, Pickering moves the audience to tears in a scene in which John
discovers Robert spying on him while he rehearses alone late at night on a bare
stage; Robert, in a moment of complete vulnerability, stands in the dark at the
back of the house, begins to weep and admits to John, “You make me feel small.”

In the hands of these two actors, Mamet’s many passages of
layered meaning shine as the linguistic and psychological gems they are.
Moreover, although the script has a distinct cadence that includes a great deal
of comedic repetition, the overall effect is naturalistic. Sapiro and Pickering
show us the “staginess” of theater people’s interactions with one another—the
bittersweet truth of how difficult true intimacy can be among members of a
profession concerned with the exploration of intimacy. A sparkling
meta-analysis of theater and humanity, Alchemist’s A Life in the Theatre is a must-see for theater and non-theater
folk alike.

Tags

Selena Milewski is a staff writer and copy editor for the Shepherd Express. Her writing contributions include theater reviews, A&E feature articles, Off the Cuff interviews and articles for special issues such as the Best of Milwaukee Winners Guide.

SOCIAL UPDATES

Sign up to receive the latest from ShepherdExpress.com and win free tickets to area events!

Email Lists

Arts & Entertainment

Ticket Tuesday

News and Views

Week in Review

Dining

Deals and Promotions

Shepherd Events

Email Address

By submitting this form, you are granting: The Shepherd Express, 207 E. Buffalo St., Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 53202, United States, http://shepherdexpress.com permission to email you. You may unsubscribe via the link found at the bottom of every email. (See our Email Privacy Policy for details.) Emails are serviced by Constant Contact.